Breadcrumbs

Name Details

Name:

Glasgow University Library. Reading Room

Dates:

Notes:

A separate students' Reading Room was established above the Chamberlain's room - east of the Logic classroom on the south side of the quadrangle - in 1843 by merging the various class libraries, except the Divinity Hall Library. It was later moved to part of the large Hall of the Adam Library building, with separate access from Museum Square. It was attended by a sub-librarian.After the move to Gilmorehill the Reading Room was originally in the Lower Hall of the Library. This location was found to be unsuitable after some years, so in 1883 the Lower Hall of the Hunterian Museum was converted for this purpose until electric light was installed in the Library. A Students' Waiting Room, containing newspapers and periodicals, was opened next to the Reading Room in 1881. In the summer of 1901 the Exam Hall was converted to offices, thereby cutting off direct access to the Reading Room from the Library, and part of the Old Reading Room was converted to a temporary Exam Hall.A new round Reading Room, on the north side of University Avenue, on the site of Hillhead House, was opened in 1939. Separate class libraries were located in its gallery. The basement was substantially reorganised c.1962.Most of the stock was transferred to a new Short Loans reading room in the main University Library building c.1993.[See: James Coutts, A history of the University of Glasgow from its foundation in 1451 to 1909 (Glasgow, 1909); W.P. Dickson, The Glasgow University Library: notes on its history, arrangements, and aims (Glasgow, 1888), pp 27-28; David Murray, Memories of the Old College of Glasgow: some chapters in the history of the University (Glasgow, 1927), pp 165-166]